Legalise drugs to beat crime

The war on drugs has failed according to a North West Euro-MP, who is calling for legalisation of some illegal drugs.

Liberal Democrat Chris Davies said international policies intended to curb drug use have turned two-bit smugglers into millionaire gangsters and helped fund international terrorism.
Mr Davies said the policies of prohibition, demanded by the UN, have failed.

He claims that they are directly responsible for a criminal trade believed to be worth £200 billion a year.

He said: “Chicago gangster Al Capone did well out of US alcohol prohibition in the 1920s, but legions of his kind now make a fortune out of 21st century drugs prohibition on a world-wide scale.

“They corrupt officials, undermine governments, and make a laughing stock of police forces across the world.

“The illegal drug trade also funds terrorist organisations and puts guns in the hands of those who would kill British soldiers in southern Afghanistan.”

Mr Davies said the huge financial gains to be made because drugs are illegal creates incentives for their harmful drug use.

He claims the only way to defeat the criminals is to legalise some drugs, making them available for sale through closely supervised official outlets.

With government officials meeting in Vienna this week to set world drugs policy for the next 10 years, Mr Davies is calling for adoption of a radically different approach. He said: “The current system of absolute prohibition is creating more drug users, not less.

“If people wanting to quit smoking or drinking ran the risk of being locked up if they asked for help, the public would rightly think that politicians had taken leave of their senses.

“Some politicians are condemning people to a life of addiction so that they can pretend they are tough on crime.

“Politicians who call for continued use of tough penalties against drug users have pushed up prices and created the incentives for criminals.

“They must bear responsibility for the explosion in drug addiction over the past 40 years.”